Beating Broke

Personal Finance from the Broke Perspective

How Does Tello Mobile Compare to Other Networks

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If you’re looking for a low-cost cell phone provider that gets the job of talk and texting done without all the bells and whistles, Tello Mobile may be the right cell phone provider for you.  While it lacks many of the features of other cell phone providers, the price can’t be beat.

How Does Tello Mobile Compare to Other Networks?

About Tello Mobile

Tello Mobile offers affordable cell phone service and terrific customer service.  However, since it is a discounted cell phone provider, it won’t have all the features of a big cell phone provider like AT & T, T-Mobile, Sprint, and Verizon.  On the other hand, Tello Mobile doesn’t have all of the expenses.

How Much Are Tello Mobile Plans?

Tello Mobile is an ideal cell phone provider for those who are in high school and college students just starting out on their own.  Their plans are affordable, especially for those on a tight budget.

Their cheapest plan is for no data and 100 minutes and free texting for just $5 (taxes and fees not included).

While on the other end, their plan for unlimited data and unlimited minutes is $39 per month (tax and fees not included).

How Does Tello Mobile Compare to Other Networks?

You can choose a range of options in between these two extremes based on your own specific needs.  In addition, they offer family plans that are equally affordable and designed for two to four family members.

They do not require a contract, a benefit that many people enjoy.

Coverage

Their coverage is provided by the Nationwide Sprint Network on a 4G LTE network.  Historically, among the big four Sprint is ranked lowest for coverage, so if you live in a rural area, Tello Mobile might not be the provider for you.

Interestingly, they offer free calling to four international locations—Canada, Mexico, China, and Romania.

Cell Phones for Purchase

You can easily bring your cell phone over to Tello Mobile if it has CDMA capabilities.  If you don’t have a phone or don’t want to bring one over, you can buy an affordable phone from Tello Mobile.

However, don’t look for the latest version of a cell phone here.  Instead, you’ll find older versions of phones for a lower cost or refurbished phones.  For instance, they are currently offering a refurbished Apple iPhone 8 for $399 and a refurbished Apple iPhone XR for $519.

Customer Service

Tello Mobile has polite and helpful customer service.  You can reach them via phone or email, and they have an extensive FAQs section that may negate the need to talk to someone.

However, unlike other, more expensive providers, they do not have a physical location you can visit for additional assistance.

Final Thoughts

Tello Mobile is a provider that offers the basics and free calling to a few select countries.  It is best for individuals or families who have light cell phone needs or for high school students or college students looking for affordability.

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How to Handle Someone Who Gives Too Many Gifts

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First world problems, right?  How can you complain about someone who gives too many gifts?

Believe it or not, that’s something I’ve struggled with during the holiday season.  I have one relative who, simply put, is buying too many gifts for me, my husband and my kids.

Handle Someone Who Gives Too Many Gifts

How to Handle Someone Who Gives Too Many Gifts

If this relative was independently wealthy, that would be one thing, but I know that she’s also trying to save money for some home repairs and a trip of a lifetime to Europe.  I wish she would buy each of us just one gift and put the rest of the money in her vacation fund.

Do you also have problems with someone in your life who buys too many presents?

If so, there are things you can do.  (Though you’ll probably want to implement most of these suggestions AFTER this holiday season.)

 

Set a Gift Giving Limit

Most people buy gifts because they want to be nice, and they want to do something special for you.  However, people can overstep their bounds.  This year between all of my relatives who like to give gifts to our kids, the kids are getting more than enough presents.  Combined with the gifts my husband and I were going to give, my kids were going to have way too many gifts.

I set aside some of the gifts I was going to give; I’ll use them next year.  I also had my mom set aside some of her gifts for birthdays.  I’ve also asked some of the relatives to set a limit of one or two gifts in future years so that our children are not drowning in presents.

Accept and Be Appreciative

Another idea is to simply accept the many gifts and be appreciative.  After all, as Trent Hamm, guest blogger on The Christian Science Monitor, points out, “These gifts are given out of love.”  Hamm, who struggles with his family members giving his kids too many gifts, explains, “People give our kids gifts because they love them so much and it’s their way of expressing it.  For me, telling them  not to do so is akin to saying, ‘Please don’t express your love and caring for our children.’”

Handle Someone Who Gives Too Many Gifts
Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

If someone like a grandparent routinely goes overboard with the gift giving, you can reduce the number of presents that you get your kids and save money.  You can just reap the benefits of saving money, or you can take the cash that you saved by not buying so many gifts and instead give the cash as a present to the prodigious gift giver.  Everything comes full circle this way.

Direct the Giver’s Generosity

I remember when I was little, my mom’s friend wanted to get me a Christmas present.  She got me Green Eggs and Ham since I was a prolific reader, but  I was well beyond that book.  Too often, people try to be generous by giving a present, but the gift they give is not necessarily what the recipient needs or wants.

You can direct the gift giver’s generosity by steering her to a wish list.  You could create it on Amazon, and then you would be able to keep track of what has been bought, and you could also have some say in the plethora of presents coming into your house.

Final Thoughts

Learning how to handle someone who gives too many gifts requires tact and patience.  While the situation may be frustrating now, the time will likely come when that person, especially if it is a grandparent, will be gone, and you’ll wish you had this problem.  Be grateful, and use one of the suggestions above to try to stem the tide of gifts, even if that person isn’t willing to change.

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Do you struggle with well-meaning relatives buying too many gifts?  If so, how do you handle the situation?

 

Is It Worth Paying for Amazon Prime Membership?

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My husband and I have been Amazon Prime members for years, but each year the benefits and reasons to keep our membership (even if it does cost $119 a year) increase.  Especially during the pandemic, I’ve found my Amazon Prime membership to be essential.  If you’re wondering, is it worth paying for an Amazon Prime membership, the answer is a resounding yes!

Is Amazon Prime Membership Worth It?

Benefits of an Amazon Prime Membership

There are so many benefits to this membership!

Free Whole Foods Delivery

Amazon bought out Whole Foods in 2017, and one of the first things they did was lower the grocery prices.  (There was a reason Whole Foods used to jokingly be called “whole paycheck” by many).  Now, if you live in certain areas of the country, Amazon will deliver groceries to you from Whole Foods in less than two hours!

I discovered this service about two months ago, and we’ve used it three times.  I can’t speak highly enough of this service!  If you hate going to the grocery store or you’re avoiding it because you’re trying to limit potential exposure to coronavirus, this service is amazing.

Simply go through Amazon’s Whole Foods page, put your items in the cart, and check out.  Amazon will suggest a tip for your driver.  (It seems to be $7 for orders under $100 and $10 for orders between $100 and $150.)  You choose a delivery time, often available within the next two hours if you’d like.

Your shopper will contact you while she’s shopping to let you know if an item is unavailable and what substitutions are available.  You can choose to accept or decline the substitutions.

Is Amazon Prime Membership Worth It?
Photo by Fallon Michael on Unsplash

Within two hours, your items are at your door.  Amazon has contactless delivery, and the drivers I’ve seen have all been wearing masks.  My items have come in pristine condition two out of three orders.  On one of my orders, the shopper sent me 10 lemons instead of 10 pears.  I simply asked for a refund on Amazon, and my money was quickly returned to me for that item.

Two-Day Delivery

One of the best reasons an Amazon Prime membership is worth it is because of the free two-day delivery.  Order an item, and it will likely be to your door in two-days.  You don’t pay any shipping.  I should mention that due to the pandemic, some items are arriving more slowly, but in the last few months, that has rebounded.

Even better, I can send items to my mom, who lives across the country from me, from Amazon for free.  Just last week I sent her a book for her birthday, and she got it in two days.  This is an excellent benefit any time, but especially during the Christmas season.

Prime Video

Also included in your Amazon Prime membership is Prime Video.  You get thousands of shows to watch for free.  Not only do they have great movies and tv shows, but Amazon also produces their own shows such as The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Catastrophe, and Mozart in the Jungle, to name a few.

Add on Channels

Even though there are many, many shows to watch on Amazon Prime, you have the option to upgrade to additional premium channels such as

  • HBO – $14.99 a month
  • Hallmark Movies NOW – $5.99 a month
  • Smithsonian Plus – $4.99 a month
  • Starz – $8.99 a month
  • MLB.TV – $24.99

just to name a few.  There are more than 20 premium channels you can choose from.

Prime Reading

If you’re a bookworm, try out Prime Reading.  This service comes with your Prime membership and offers you the chance to read books, magazines, and comics for free.  If you’d prefer to listen to the story, Prime Reading comes with Audible Narration.  Even better, you can read on any device you own.

More Services

The scope of this post doesn’t let me tout all of the benefits of a Prime membership.  Other features that you may enjoy include

free music streaming,

Prime Pantry,

Amazon Prime Day

Prime Wardrobe,

Amazon Smile, and

Amazon Photos (unlimited photo storage),

How Much Does an Amazon Prime Membership Cost?

There are varying levels of membership

Standard Amazon Prime Membership

Is Amazon Prime Membership Worth It?
Photo by Morning Brew on Unsplash

A standard Amazon Prime membership is $119 a year, or you can opt to pay monthly for $12.99 a month.  Many people balk at that price, but I think those people haven’t truly considered the value in that price.

Right now, we pay $13.78 for a Netflix subscription.  That is per month for one streaming service.  Even if the only thing Amazon offered was streaming, if you pay the yearly $119 Amazon Prime membership that would equate to $9.91 a month.

But we don’t just use Amazon for streaming.  We easily recoup our money in free shipping on the products we buy throughout the year and the gifts we send.

Student Membership

If you’re a student, you can get your membership for just $59 a year or $6.49 monthly.

Try It for Free

If you’re still wondering is an Amazon Prime membership worth it, try it for free!  Amazon lets you try out Amazon Prime for 30 days for free.  You get all of the benefits regular paying members get.

Drawbacks to Membership

There are very few drawbacks to an Amazon Prime membership.  The only real flaw I can think of is that Amazon Prime doesn’t cover everything.

Not All Videos Are Covered

For instance, there are still some series and movies that aren’t covered by Amazon Prime.  If you want to watch them, you have to pay for them.

Not All Items Have Free Shipping

Likewise, not every single item qualifies for free shipping.  There are a few items, should you choose to buy them, you will still pay for shipping or that require you to buy $35 worth of other merchandise before they ship free.

Final Thoughts

Is Amazon Prime worth it?  For our family, the answer is a resounding yes.  I think Amazon is actually an amazing bargain considering all the many perks you get.

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